Introduction The European Union (“EU”) is currently undergoing a significant reform within its payment services framework. This development is reflected in the proposed Third Payment Services Directive (“PSD3”) and the accompanying Payment
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Open banking has always carried a paradox between the promise of revolutionary innovation shadowed by the practical and legal challenges of implementation. PSD2 opened the door to third-party providers, enabling fintechs to aggregate accounts, ini
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Fraud has always been the shadow lurking at the edges of digital payments, but the Payment Services Directive II (“PSD 2”)’s introduction of strong customer authentication seemed, at first, to have turned the corner. Yet reality proved less
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For a decade, the European payment services landscape has been defined by tension posed by the desire to open markets to innovation and competition, counterbalanced by the imperative to protect consumers and maintain financial stability. Directive
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In the operation of payment institutions, safeguarding client funds is a fundamental regulatory requirement. Traditionally, this has been achieved through the segregation of client funds in separate accounts. However, Maltese law recognises altern
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On 19th August 2025 the Malta Financial Services Authority (“MFSA”) has published the findings of a thematic review into compliance of Financial Institutions with the Payment Account Regulations (SL 371.18). The review focused on the three I
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On the 10th of June 2025, the European Banking Authority (the “EBA”) published a No Action letter advising the European Union (“EU”) Commission, EU Council and EU Parliament to avoid dual authorisation under two EU legislative regimes. The
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The European Union (the “EU”) shall be revising the rules of the Payment Services Directive (the “PSD 2” or “Directive”) due to digital payment methods which have emerged since the last time the Directive was amended. The current versi
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